A55: Accidents

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many personal injury accidents there were on the A55 in Wales in each of the last five years; and how many involved at least one heavy goods vehicle in each year.

Paul Murphy: The data regarding personal injury accidents on the A55 in Wales is contained in the table. Although these figures encouragingly show a downward trend, the number of accidents in 2006 is still very regrettable.
	
		
			  Personal injury accidents on A55 between Holyhead and Wales/England boundary 
			   Total  3.5t + 
			 2002 140 12 
			 2003 125 7 
			 2004 131 6 
			 2005 101 7 
			 2006 89 5

Alcoholic Drinks: Misuse

Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department further to the Prime Minister's comments on tackling binge drinking at her press conference on 28 January 2008, what additional powers are planned for local authorities to tackle excessive drinking in town centres.

Vernon Coaker: holding answer 1 February 2008
	In her speech of 6 February 2008, the Home Secretary made it clear that the Home Office will consider whether the existing laws on the confiscation of alcohol from young people are adequate. The Home Secretary also said that she will consider changing the law if necessary, to make it clear that drinking in public by those people under the age of 18 is unacceptable.
	Additionally, the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, (Andy Burnham) said in his statement of 4 March 2008, that the offence of persistently selling alcohol to children would be changed from 'three strikes' to 'two strikes' in three months. The Government will legislate to increase the maximum fine for not obeying an instruction to stop drinking in a designated public place from £500 to £2500. Other issues which may not require legislation include making it easier for the Police to disperse antisocial drinkers and we will extend the alcohol arrest referral pilots so that under 18s may also benefit from a brief intervention from a trained worker.

Drinking Water

John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much his Department spent on bottled water in the latest year for which figures are available.

Kevin Brennan: The total spend of bottled water for the Department for Children, Schools and Families' predecessor Department DFES for 2006-07 was £53,000 per annum.

Schools: Community Relations

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what steps the Government has taken to assist schools with the promotion of community cohesion since 1997.

Beverley Hughes: Good schools, through improvements to their teaching and learning; work to narrow achievement gaps and engagement with the community, have been developing an understanding and appreciation of others among their pupils and preparing them for active participation in a diverse society,
	The Education and Inspections Act 2006 placed a new duty to promote community cohesion on the governing body of maintained schools in England, which came into effect from 1 September 2007. Guidance to schools on the new duty was issued in July 2007. Ofsted plan to inspect schools against this duty from September 2008 as part of school inspections.
	Furthermore, we launched the Schools Linking Network on 3 October 2007 to support schools in linking with other schools and encourage interaction between pupils from different backgrounds A national conference and nine regional conferences were held to raise awareness of the duty. Currently, we are developing a resource pack to provide further practical support for schools in meeting the duty.

Health Visitors

David Kidney: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance his Department gives to primary care trusts on the recruitment and retention of health visitors.

Ann Keen: It is the responsibility of local organisations to commission and develop services to respond to local needs. The Operating Framework for 2008-09 highlights the importance of maternity and children's services and work force, and the need for local organisations to commission and provide the necessary work force. Health visitors are well placed to deliver significant parts of this service.

Hearing Aids: Waiting Lists

Clive Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the waiting time for assessment for digital hearing aids was in each primary care trust in England in the latest period for which figures are available.

Ivan Lewis: The data is not collected in the format requested. However, average waiting times for all audiological assessments as at December 2007, including assessment for digital hearing aids, are shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Average (median) waiting times for audiological assessments: position at end December 2007: commissioner based 
			  Primary care trust  Median waiting times (weeks) 
			 Newcastle PCT 4.4 
			 North Tyneside PCT 4.3 
			 Hartlepool PCT 2.5 
			 North Tees PCT 4.4 
			 Darlington PCT 45.1 
			 Gateshead PCT 3.3 
			 South Tyneside PCT 2.9 
			 Sunderland Teaching PCT 2.7 
			 Middlesbrough PCT 2.6 
			 County Durham 39.6 
			 Redcar and Cleveland 3.3 
			 Northumberland Care Trust 5.0 
			 Blackburn With Darwen PCT 2.9 
			 Salford PCT 1.9 
			 Stockport PCT (1)— 
			 Ashton, Leigh and Wigan PCT 5.7 
			 Blackpool PCT 7.8 
			 Bolton PCT 1.5 
			 Warrington PCT 6.0 
			 Knowsley PCT 7.9 
			 Oldham PCT 1.8 
			 Bury PCT 1.5 
			 Tameside and Glossop PCT 1.7 
			 Cumbria 4.4 
			 North Lancashire 3.9 
			 Central Lancashire 19.1 
			 East Lancashire 3.0 
			 Sefton 2.6 
			 Wirral 4.3 
			 Liverpool 8.6 
			 Halton and St. Helens 7.8 
			 West Cheshire (1)— 
			 Central and Eastern Cheshire 3.8 
			 Rochdale, Heywood and Middleton 0.7 
			 Trafford 2.9 
			 Manchester 0.6 
			 North Lincolnshire PCT 6.6 
			 Rotherham PCT 1.2 
			 Calderdale PCT 3.4 
			 Barnsley PCT 3.0 
			 Leeds 9.2 
			 Kirklees 3.5 
			 Wakefield 3.5 
			 Sheffield 4.3 
			 Doncaster 2.8 
			 North Yorkshire and York 4.5 
			 East Riding of Yorkshire (1)— 
			 Hull Teaching 43.8 
			 Bradford and Airedale Teaching 6.3 
			 North East Lincolnshire Care Trust Plus 6.3 
			 Nottingham City PCT 2.7 
			 Bassetlaw PCT 2.8 
			 Derbyshire County 3.4 
			 Derby City 4.9 
			 Nottinghamshire County Teaching 2.7 
			 Lincolnshire Teaching 5.7 
			 Leicestershire County and Rutland 4.3 
			 Leicester City Teaching 4.3 
			 Northamptonshire Teaching 4.4 
			 Herefordshire PCT (1)— 
			 South Birmingham PCT 4.3 
			 Shropshire County PCT 5.4 
			 Walsall PCT 3.4 
			 Coventry PCT 4.7 
			 Telford and Wrekin PCT 5.3 
			 Wolverhampton City PCT 3.9 
			 Heart of Birmingham PCT 4.4 
			 Dudley 3.2 
			 Sandwell 3.7 
			 Birmingham East and North 3.8 
			 North Staffordshire 48.3 
			 Stoke on Trent Teaching (1)— 
			 South Staffordshire 3.3 
			 Worcestershire 3.1 
			 Warwickshire 4.7 
			 Solihull PCT 3.4 
			 Luton PCT 5.4 
			 South East Essex 4.0 
			 Bedfordshire 6.0 
			 East and North Hertfordshire 3.5 
			 West Hertfordshire 3.4 
			 Peterborough 2.7 
			 Cambridgeshire 3.3 
			 Norfolk 3.9 
			 Great Yarmouth and Waveney Teaching 3.5 
			 Suffolk 3.1 
			 West Essex 3.8 
			 North East Essex 4.6 
			 Mid Essex 3.3 
			 South West Essex Teaching 3.5 
			 Havering PCT 20.0 
			 Kingston PCT 27.0 
			 Bromley PCT 4.6 
			 Greenwich PCT 4.1 
			 Barnet PCT 3.3 
			 Hillingdon PCT 3.0 
			 Enfield PCT 7.4 
			 Barking and Dagenham PCT 10.3 
			 City and Hackney PCT 4.1 
			 Tower Hamlets PCT 2.8 
			 Newham PCT 3.6 
			 Haringey PCT 8.0 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham PCT 6.6 
			 Ealing PCT 31.8 
			 Hounslow PCT 14.0 
			 Brent PCT 6.4 
			 Harrow PCT 4.4 
			 Camden PCT 4.3 
			 Islington PCT 5.0 
			 Croydon PCT 3.3 
			 Kensington and Chelsea PCT 6.4 
			 Westminster PCT 6.1 
			 Lambeth PCT 4.6 
			 Southwark PCT 5.0 
			 Lewisham PCT 4.3 
			 Wandsworth PCT 3.7 
			 Richmond and Twickenham PCI 13.4 
			 Sutton and Merton PCT 3.9 
			 Redbridge PCT 3.8 
			 Waltham Forest PCT 6.2 
			 Bexley Care Trust 4.1 
			 Medway PCT 5.2 
			 Brighton and Hove City PCT 12.8 
			 Surrey 5.5 
			 West Sussex Teaching 15.9 
			 East Sussex Downs and Weald 19.2 
			 Hastings and Rother 2.7 
			 West Kent 21.0 
			 Eastern and Coastal Kent Teaching 51.7 
			 Milton Keynes PCT 3.2 
			 Portsmouth City PCT 13.1 
			 Southampton City PCT 2.8 
			 Hampshire 6.7 
			 Buckinghamshire 4.5 
			 Oxfordshire 4.4 
			 Berkshire West 4.7 
			 Berkshire East Teaching 6.5 
			 Isle of Wight Healthcare 11.2 
			 South Gloucestershire PCT 4.0 
			 Plymouth PCT 2.7 
			 Bath and North East Somerset PCT 8.8 
			 Swindon PCT 2.4 
			 North Somerset PCT 12.8 
			 Gloucestershire 27.4 
			 Bristol Teaching 3.7 
			 Wiltshire 6.4 
			 Somerset 5.2 
			 Dorset 4.5 
			 Bournemouth and Poole Teaching 4.3 
			 Cornwall and Isles of Scilly 2.8 
			 Devon 3.2 
			 Torbay Care Trust 1.1 
			 (1) Over 52 weeks.  Notes: 1. PCT data will be affected by estimates made for Barnet and Chase Farm hospitals NHS trust that may not reflect their true position. 2. Median waits are calculated from aggregate returns, and are therefore only an estimate of the average wait. 3. PCTs where the median falls in the 52+ week timeband are shown as 'over 52 weeks'.  Source: Dept of Health form DM01

Nursing and Midwifery Council: Management

Jim Devine: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what arrangements his Department has for oversight of the governance and management practices of the Nursing and Midwifery Council.

Ben Bradshaw: The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) is an independent regulatory body and as such is responsible for its own internal management practices.
	The Government have reviewed the governance of all the health care regulatory bodies and published its proposals in the White Paper, "Trust, Assurance and Safety— The Regulation of Health Professionals in the 21st Century". These include a number of reforms to the governance of the regulatory bodies, such as the introduction of appointment only councils that are smaller and more board-like.
	The Government established the Council for Healthcare Regulatory Excellence (CHRE) in April 2003 with functions that include promoting best practice and consistency in the regulation of health care professionals and reporting on the performance of regulators' various functions. As part of its responsibilities, CHRE undertakes an annual performance review, of which governance is a key factor, of all of the health care regulators.

Cycling: Environment Protection

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what advice she has offered to partners in local strategic partnerships and local area agreements on cycling as a form of sustainable transport.

Rosie Winterton: Specific advice related to transport (including cycling) and local area agreements Was published in December 2007 by the Department for Communities and Local Government and the Department for Transport entitled 'Local Transport Services: the Crucial Role of the New Local Performance Framework' and can be viewed at:
	www.communities.gov.uk/publications/localgovernment/transport
	Earlier this year the Secretary of State set out our approach to cycling in "A Sustainable Approach for Cycling", the same time announcing a six fold increase in the budget for Cycling England, Which will complement local authority spend. Their budget will double to £20 million next year and then rise to £60 million in both 2009-10 and 2010-11.
	This investment will enable an extra 500,000 children to have access to the new Bikeability cycle training by 2012, create additional safer walking and cycling routes to at least 500 schools and allow the expansion of the Cycling Demonstration Town programme.

Dartford Tunnel: Tolls

Adam Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many DART-Tag holders live in  (a) DA11,  (b) DA12,  (c) DA13 and  (d) ME3 postcode areas.

Rosie Winterton: We do not hold data in the form requested. DART-Tags are registered against accounts and may be switched between users. The address held relates only to the account holder. In some cases there is more than one tag registered on an account.
	The following figures show the number of accounts registered against addresses in these postcode areas. The account holder may riot necessarily live at the address; in some cases the address will be that of a business.
	
		
			   Number of accounts 
			  (a) DA11 550 
			  (b) DA12 622 
			  (c) DA13 288 
			  (d) ME3 401

Intercity Express: Consultants

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much her Department has spent to date on consultants on the specification for the new Intercity Express programme; and for what reason this matter was not deemed to be one for the rolling stock companies.

Tom Harris: The Department for Transport has spent £7.9 million on the project since 2005. The Department has taken the lead in developing the specification, to ensure we achieve maximum benefits for passengers and value for money for taxpayers for what is expected to be one of the largest rolling stock orders ever placed in the UK.
	The procurement process for the new train was open to all interested parties within the industry, including rolling stock companies. Tenders are due to be returned in May.

Roads: Repairs and Maintenance

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many road works on the strategic road network took place in  (a) the last 10 years and  (b) 2007; under what mechanism and how frequently road markings are reviewed; how many road markings were (i) made and (ii) altered after accidents occurred in the vicinity in the last 12 months; and what the average length of time taken to remark a road after an initial decision to do so had been made was in the last 12 months.

Tom Harris: The following table shows the number of road works on the strategic road network undertaken and recorded in the years for which data is available. The increase year-by-year is not an indication of an increased number of road works but reflects improved record keeping.
	Road markings are reviewed as part of an inspection programme carried out in line with TD 26/04 Inspection and Maintenance of Road Markings and Road Studs on Motorways and All purpose Trunk Roads. Inspections take place either every 7 or 28 days, depending on the inspection category of the route. The number of road markings renewed following accidents is not immediately available and the time taken between identifying a need to renew road markings and carrying out the work will depend on the category of the defect.
	
		
			   2005  2006  2007 
			 Major Schemes 232 871 438 
			 Smaller Schemes and Renewals 2,654 2,535 2,710 
			 Routine Works 4,138 6,721 9,672 
			 Technology Works 7 20 1,506 
			 All urgent works 732 1,390 2,454 
			 Others 1,665 3,810 1,534 
			 Total 11,433 17,353 20,321

Rolling Stock: East Coast Railway Line

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what process is being followed to determine the specifications for the new rolling stock planned for deployment on the east coast mainline; and if she will make a statement.

Tom Harris: The next major new rolling stock deployment on the East Coast Main Line (ECML) will be the Intercity Express Programme (IEP). The specification for IEP was set out in the Department for Transport's Invitation to Tender, published in November. This is to achieve maximum benefits for passenger and value for money for taxpayers. It incorporates 'best-in-class' features of modern trains plus targets for improving these.
	The Thameslink Programme Will also see the introduction of a new fleet of suburban vehicles, operating to commuter destinations on the East Coast Main Line. The Department will be initiating the procurement process later this year.

Transport: Finance

David Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much funding the local transport authority in  (a) Suffolk,  (b) Bedfordshire,  (c) Cambridgeshire,  (d) Essex,  (e) Hertfordshire and  (f) Norfolk received (i) in total, (ii) per mile of road and (iii) per head of population in each year since 1997.

Rosie Winterton: My hon. Friend, the then Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport (Gillian Merron) provided this information up to and including 2006-07 in her reply of 22 March 2007,  Official Report, columns 1048-50W. Table 1 contains the equivalent figures for 2007-08. The final amount of some funding is dependent on how much is actually claimed and the figures include the current estimate of what will be claimed for the rest of 2007-08.
	Table 1 also includes final figures for 2006-07 for Cambridgeshire, which have been revised from the previous answer in the light of further information, in particular in respect of their Guided Bus Scheme.
	Total local transport funding, as included in table 1, comprises:
	capital for the delivery of local transport plans, including for major local authority schemes, (which can vary substantially from year to year and between authorities);
	specific grants to local authorities for bus services;
	the specific road safety grant (which started in 2007-08);
	the Community Infrastructure Fund; and
	the Transport Innovation Fund
	
		
			  Table 1 
			  Local authority  2007-08 funding (£000)  2007-08 funding (£/mile)  2007-08 funding (£/head) 
			 Suffolk County Council 25,839 6.09 37.79 
			 Bedfordshire County 19,553 11.49 33.93 
			 Cambridgeshire County Council 62,214 21.53 107.49 
			 Essex County Council 51,112 10.10 38.42 
			 Hertfordshire County Council 27,038 8.93 25.97 
			 Norfolk County Council 37,490 6.01 45.92 
			 
			 2006-07: Cambridgeshire 43,467 15.04 75.10

Supercomplainer Procedures

Angus MacNeil: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform on how many occasions each of the designated representative bodies under the Enterprise Act 2002 has declined to act upon a consumer request to invoke supercomplainer powers in cases of alleged consumer detriment.

Gareth Thomas: This is a matter for the individual designated super-complainants.

Regional Ministers: Finance

Julia Goldsworthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the Answer of 25 February 2008,  Official Report, column 1229W, on regional Ministers: finance, which programme budgets are administered by the Government Offices for the Regions, broken down by sponsoring Department.

Parmjit Dhanda: The information from 2006-07, which is the most recent year the data was collected, is as follows:
	
		
			  Sponsor Department  Programme funding (£) 
			 Department for Transport 2,389,000,000 
			 Communities and Local Government 2,180,046,041 
			 Department for Works and Pensions 1,150,845,613 
			 Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform 947,214,000 
			 Department for Education and Skills 811,379,686 
			 Home Office 233,313,878 
			 Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 16,155,346 
			 Total 7,727,954,564

Departmental Travel

Jeremy Browne: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much his Department spent on travel  (a) within the UK and  (b) overseas for officials in the last year for which figures are available.

Meg Munn: I refer the hon. Member to the reply my hon. Friend the Minister for Europe, Jim Murphy, gave to him on 27 February 2008,  Official Report, columns 1700-01W.
	Departmental travel arrangements are made in the most efficient and cost effective way, and all official travel is undertaken in accordance with the rules set out in the 'Civil Service Management Code and the Ministerial Code.'

EC Defence Policy

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the EU's policy is on responding to a threat of an attack against Europe using missiles and weapons of mass destruction.

Kim Howells: We consider the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation the forum to develop a collective defence policy on how to respond to the threat of attack against Europe using missiles and weapons of mass destruction. The EU Lisbon Treaty states "commitments and co-operation in this area (European defence) shall be consistent with commitments under the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation, which, for those states which are members of it, remains the foundation of their collective defence and the forum for its implementation".

Immigration: Forced Marriage

Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will publish the guidance given to staff in UK overseas posts on handling immigration cases involving suspected forced marriage.

Meg Munn: It would not be appropriate to publish detailed guidance, on handling immigration cases involving suspected forced marriage, as it would serve the agenda of those perpetrating forced marriage, not help the victims. However I will gladly send copies of the current guidance to the hon. Member in confidence.
	However, general guidance on Forced Marriage is treated in the Entry Clearance Guidance, which is accessible on the UKvisas website at:
	www.ukvisas.gov.uk
	Islamabad, which handles 75 per cent. of the recorded reluctant sponsor cases, has a dedicated 'Consular-Immigration Link' team to handle these cases, with their own internal guidelines.

Immigration: Forced Marriage

Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many people in immigration cases who had been identified by officials in UK overseas posts as taking part in activities surrounding potential forced marriage were reported to the authorities in the country concerned in each of the last five years.

Meg Munn: The vast majority of forced marriage cases, dealt with by our overseas posts, involve the victim wanting to extract themselves from the situation without risking further repercussions, either in the UK or in the country of their marriage. We would not report forced marriage incidents that come to our attention to local authorities as a matter of course as this could often place the victim, and parties sympathetic to the victim, at greater risk.

Northern Rock

Andrew MacKay: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on Northern Rock's relationship with Granite.

Andrew Robathan: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what Northern Rock's relationship with Granite is.

Yvette Cooper: I refer the hon. Gentlemen to the answer I gave on the Floor of the House to the hon. Member for Isle of Wight (Mr. Turner) earlier today.

New Deal

Graham Allen: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people the new deal has helped into work, training and work experience in each new deal category since its inception.

Stephen Timms: Information on the number of people helped into work through all the new deals is in the following table.
	
		
			  Number of people into work through new deal 
			  Programme  Number 
			 New deal for young people 764,630 
			 New deal 25 plus 301,170 
			 New deal for lone parents 521,850 
			 New deal for disabled people 151,970 
			 New deal 50 plus 175,320 
			 New deal for partners 6,480 
			  Notes: 1. Data is to May 2007 and is rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Programme start dates are: New deal for young people: April 1998 (piloted from January-March 1998); New deal 25 plus: July 1998; New deal for lone parents: October 1998; New deal for partners: April 1999; New deal 50 plus: April 2000; new deal for disabled people: July 2001.  Source: DWP Information Directorate 
		
	
	Information on the number of people who have started training and work experience are only available through the options stage of the new deal for young people (NDYP) programme and the intensive activity period (IAP) of the new deal 25 plus (ND25 plus) programme.
	The available requested information is in the following tables.
	
		
			  New deal for young people (NDYP) 
			  Option  Numbers who have started 
			 Employment option 68,450 
			 Education and training option 141,610 
			  Notes: 1. Data is to May 2007 and is rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Data includes current participants on the employment and education and training options, as well as those who have left NDYP from these options. 3. Data includes those who have participated on these options but left NDYP from the follow through stage of the programme. 4. Data does not include those who have participated on these options but who are currently on the follow through stage of NDYP. 5. Data could include people on the voluntary new deals who have accessed training from the provision available through NDYP.  Source: DWP Information Directorate. 
		
	
	
		
			  New deal 25 plus 
			  Option  Numbers who have started 
			 Employment and work experience/placements stage of the IAP 92,770 
			 Education and training opportunities stage of the IAP 51,710 
			  Notes: 1. Data is to May 2007 and rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Data includes current participants on the employment/work experience/training elements of the IAP, as well as those who have left ND25 plus from these elements. 3. Data includes those who have participated on these elements of the IAP but left ND25 plus from the follow through stage of the programme. 4. Data does not includes those who have participated on these elements of the IAP but who are currently on the follow through stage of ND25 plus. 5. Data could include people on the voluntary new deals who have accessed training from the provision available through new deal 25 plus.  Source: DWP Information Directorate.

New Deal Schemes: Aberavon

Hywel Francis: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people the New Deal has assisted into work, training and work experience in Aberavon constituency since its inception, broken down by New Deal category.

Stephen Timms: The available information on the number of people helped into work through all the new deals in the Aberavon constituency is in the following table.
	
		
			  Number of people into work through New Deal in Aberavon 
			  Programme  Number 
			 New Deal for Young People 1,290 
			 New Deal 25 Plus 310 
			 New Deal for Lone Parents 900 
			 New Deal for Disabled People 650 
			 New Deal 50 plus 90 
			 New Deal for Partners 10 
			  Notes: 1. Data is to May 2007 and is rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Programme start dates are: New Deal for Young People: April 1998 (piloted from January to March 1998); New Deal 25 plus: July 1998; New Deal for Lone Parents: October 1998; New Deal for Partners: April 1999; New Deal 50 plus: April 2000; New Deal for Disabled People: July 2001. 3. Constituency data for New Deal 50 plus is only available from April 2003 and for New Deal for Partners from April 2004.  Source: DWP Information Directorate. 
		
	
	Information on the number of people who have started training and work experience is available only through the Options stage of the new deal for young people (NDYP) programme and the intensive activity period (IAP) of the new deal 25 plus (ND25 plus) programme.
	The available requested information is in the following tables:
	
		
			  New Deal for Young People (NDYP) Options in Aberavon 
			  Option  Numbers who have started 
			 Employment Option 130 
			 Education and Training Option 140 
			  Notes: 1. Data is to May 2007 and is rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Data includes current participants on the Employment and Education and Training Options, as well as those who have left NDYP from these Options. 3. Data includes those who have participated on these Options but left NDYP from the Follow Through stage of the programme. 4. Data does not include those who have participated on these Options but who are currently on the Follow Through stage of NDYP. 5. Data could include participants on the voluntary New Deals who have accessed training available through the mandatory New Deals.  Source: DWP Information Directorate. 
		
	
	
		
			  New Deal 25 plus Intensive Activity Period (IAP) in Aberavon 
			  Option  Numbers who have started 
			 Employment and Work Experience/Placements stage of the IAP 170 
			 Education and Training Opportunities stage of the IAP 10 
			  Notes: 1. Data is to May 2007 and rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Data includes current participants on the Employment/Work Experience/Training elements of the IAP, as well as those who have left ND25 plus from these elements. 3. Data includes those who have participated on these elements of the IAP but left ND25 plus from the Follow Through stage of the programme. 4. Data does not includes those who have participated on these elements of the IAP but who are currently on the Follow Through stage of ND25 plus. 5. Data could include participants on the voluntary New Deals who have accessed training available through the mandatory New Deals.  Source: DWP Information Directorate.

Rented Housing

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the  (a) current levels of the shared room rate and  (b) indicative shared room rate for the same locality/broad rental market area is in each of the 18 pathfinder local pathfinders where local housing allowances is already in place.

James Plaskitt: The information is in the following tables.
	
		
			  Shared room rate in the local housing allowance pathfinder areas at February 2 ,  2008 
			  Pathfinder a rea  Broad rental market areas  Shared room rate ( £ per week) 
			 Blackpool Fylde 55 
			 Coventry Coventry 50 
			 Brighton Brighton and Hove 77 
			 Lewisham London South East Inner 95 
			  London South East Central 80 
			 North East Lines North East Lines 46 
			 Teignbridge Devon South 65 
			  Exeter 75 
			 Leeds Leeds 55 
			  Bradford 51 
			 Conway North Coast 55 
			  North Rural 50 
			  Menai 52 
			 Edinburgh Outer (incl. N, E and S) 66 
			  Central 76 
			 Argyll and Bute Argyll and Bute 65 
			 East Riding of Yorkshire York 55 
			  Bridlington 47 
			  Hull 48 
			  Doncaster 44 
			 Guildford Guildford 85 
			  Blackwater Valley 80 
			  Crawley and Reigate 85 
			 Norwich Central Norfolk and Norwich 65 
			 Pembrokeshire Pembrokeshire 50 
			  Cardigan Coast 53 
			 St Helens St Helens 61 
			  Newton Le Willows/Earlestown 72 
			  Ashton 51 
			 Salford Central Greater Manchester 55 
			  Bolton and Bury 52 
			 South Norfolk Central Norfolk and Norwich 65 
			 Wandsworth London SW Inner 90 
			  Note:  Figures rounded to the nearest £1. 
		
	
	
		
			  Provisional shared room rate in the local housing allowance pathfinder areas from April 2008 
			  Pathfinder a rea  Broad rental market areas  Shared room rate ( £ per week) 
			 Blackpool Fylde Coast 60 
			 Coventry Coventry 50 
			 Brighton Brighton and Hove 80 
			 Lewisham Inner South East London 95 
			  Outer South East London 81 
			 North East Lines Grimsby 49 
			 Teignbridge Devon South 60 
			  Exeter 69 
			 Leeds Leeds 65 
			  Bradford and South Dales 64 
			 Conway North Clwyd 55 
			  Tremadog Bay 50 
			  Menai 53 
			  Wrexham and South Clwyd 55 
			 Edinburgh Lothians 69 
			 Argyll and Bute Argyll and Bute 65 
			 East Riding of Yorkshire York 58 
			  Bridlington 50 
			  Hull 57 
			  Doncaster 57 
			 Guildford Guildford 83 
			  Blackwater Valley 82 
			  Crawley and Reigate 82 
			 Norwich Central Norfolk and Norwich 69 
			 Pembrokeshire Pembrokeshire 52 
			  Carmarthenshire 48 
			 St Helens St Helens 60 
			  North Cheshire 58 
			  Wigan 50 
			 Salford Central Greater Manchester 60 
			  Bolton and Bury 45 
			 South Norfolk Central Norfolk and Norwich 69 
			 Wandsworth Inner SW London 123 
			  Outer SW London 94 
			  Note:  Figures rounded to the nearest 1.

State Retirement Pensions: Females

David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many women receive reduced pensions having paid the married woman's stamp; what steps he is taking to help women adversely affected as a result of reduced pension payments; and if he will make a statement.

Mike O'Brien: Basic pension entitlements for women who paid national insurance contributions at the married women's reduced rate at some point in their working lives are shown in the following table.
	Women who elected to pay reduced rate contributions were able to revoke their elections at any time. Leaflet NI 1 — "National Insurance for Married Women" went to great lengths to make it clear that married women who chose to pay reduced-rate contributions would not qualify for national insurance entitlements, including retirement pension. Married women opting to pay reduced-rate contributions were required to sign a declaration on a form attached to NI1 that they had read and understood the leaflet.
	There are no current plans to take steps to alter the level of pensions which they acquired as a result of this choice.
	
		
			   Number 
			 Full Category A retirement pension or Category B retirement pension 1,257,000 
			 Reduced Category A retirement pension or Category B retirement pension 548,000 
			 Full Category B married women's pension 1,228,000 
			 Total 3,034,000 
			  Notes: 1. Data is based upon a one per cent sample and are shown to the nearest thousand. 2. UK cases only.  Source: One per cent. IFD Datasets